🇫🇮 Finland 5-2 Canada 🇨🇦
Exhibition Game
Rogers Arena, Vancouver 🇨🇦
Sunday, 23 December 2018

Morgan Frost and Barrett Hayton scored goals, but special-teams doomed Canada’s National Junior Team in a 5-2 loss to Finland in its final pre-tournament game Sunday ahead of the 2019 IIHF World Junior Championship.

The Finns scored twice on the power play and twice shorthanded to spoil Canada’s first game at Rogers Arena in front of a red-and-white-clad crowd of more than 14,000.

Finland opened the scoring just past the midway mark of the first period when Otto Latvala followed up a Teemu Enberg opportunity and banged a rebound past Canadian goaltender Michael DiPietro, but Frost rifled a wrist shot just under the cross-bar to get Canada even less than five minutes later.

The Finns took control in the second period, scoring early and late.

Linus Nyman gave the Scandinavians the lead for good just 3:49 into the middle frame, walking out from behind the net and patiently picking his spot over the short-side shoulder of DiPietro.

Anton Lundell doubled the advantage at 17:07, knocking a rebound five-hole on netminder Ian Scott, who replaced DiPietro midway through the period.

The lead became three when Eeli Tolvanen wired a shot upstairs on Scott only 88 seconds into the third, but Hayton answered by finishing a tic-tac-toe passing play with Cody Glass and Owen Tippett for a power-play goal to get Canada back within a pair.

The Canadians dominated the third period, outshooting Finland 17-5, but couldn’t get a bounce to go their way; more than one puck hopped over a Canadian stick in front of an yawning Finnish goal.

A late power play gave Canada hope, but Santeri Virtanen curled a shot into the empty net with 1.1 seconds to go to finish off the scoring.

With exhibition play done, the 2019 IIHF World Junior Championship begins Wednesday when Canada opens defence of its Gold medal against Denmark.

BOXSCORE
1st Period
09:18 – 🇫🇮 PEN – Vainionpää, roughing
09:18 – 🇨🇦 PEN – Comtois, roughing
10:19 – 🇫🇮 PEN – Vaakanainen, tripping
10:26 – 🇫🇮 SH GOAL – Latvala (Engberg)
13:07 – 🇫🇮 PEN – Kakko, interference
15:06 – 🇨🇦 PP GOAL – Frost (Suzuki, Smith)
16:13 – 🇨🇦 PEN – McIsaac, holding

2nd Period
23:49 – 🇫🇮 GOAL – Nyman (Kakko, Honka)
36:36 – 🇨🇦 PEN – Smith, tripping
37:07 – 🇫🇮 PP GOAL – Lundell (Ylönen, Kakko)
37:31 – 🇫🇮 PEN – Heinola, interference
38:32 – 🇫🇮 PEN – Anttalainen, high sticking
40:00 – 🇨🇦 PEN – Suzuki, holding

3rd Period
41:26 – 🇫🇮 PP GOAL – Tolvanen (Jokiharju, Heponiemi)
45:39 – 🇫🇮 PEN – team, delay of game
46:43 – 🇨🇦 PP GOAL – Hayton (Glass, Tippett)
52:39 – 🇨🇦 PEN – Frost, tripping
57:27 – 🇨🇦 PEN – Smith, holding
59:21 – 🇫🇮 PEN – Vaakanainen, holding
59:59 – 🇫🇮 EN SH GOAL – Virtanen

GOALTENDERS
W: 🇫🇮 Luukkonen (31-33)
L: 🇨🇦 DiPietro (13-15), Scott (8-10)

SHOTS ON GOAL
🇫🇮 10+10+6 = 26
🇨🇦 9+8+16 = 33

ROSTERS
🇫🇮 Goaltenders: Filip Lindberg, Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen. Defence: Aleksi Anttalainen, Ville Heinola, Anttoni Honka, Henri Jokiharju, Oskari Laaksonen, Otto Latvala, Toni Utunen, Urho Vaakanainen. Forwards: Teemu Engberg, Aleksi Heponiemi, Kaapo Kakko, Rasmus Kupari, Anton Lundell, Sami Moilanen, Linus Nyman, Valtteri Puustinen, Aarne Talvitie, Eeli Tolvanen, Samuli Vainionpää, Santeri Virtanen, Jesse Ylönen.
🇨🇦 Goaltenders: Michael DiPietro, Ian Scott. Defence: Evan Bouchard, Josh Brook, Noah Dobson, Jared McIsaac, Ian Mitchell, Markus Phillips, Ty Smith. Forwards: Jaret Anderson-Dolan, Shane Bowers, Maxime Comtois, MacKenzie Entwistle, Morgan Frost, Cody Glass, Barrett Hayton, Alexis Lafrenière, Brett Leason, Jack Studnicka, Nick Suzuki, Owen Tippett, Joe Veleno.

Article Credit: Hockey Canada
Photo Credit: Iltalehti – IIHF – HHOF – IOC